My Dubai Rent takes you inside a reader's home to have a look at what they pay each month, see who they live with, and ask what they like and don't like
Karan Thawrani pays Dh44,000 ($11,980) a year to live in a one-bedroom pad in the famous Bur Dubai district.
The legal consultant, from India, said he chose to live there because he grew up in the neighbourhood as a child and feels a strong sense of shared community.
Among his favourite aspects of life in Bur Dubai is how busy it is with constant hustle and bustle, and also how convenient it is to reach other parts of the city from his home.
Mr Thawrani, 26, invited The National in for a tour of his home in Desert Rose Apartments to show us what makes it so very special to him.
Why did you choose to live here and how much do you pay in rent?
I chose to live here because I was born in this neighbourhood. I lived here until I was 8, when I moved to India with my family.
I returned to Dubai about two years ago and I wanted to live here because it has special memories for me.
It gives me a feeling of home that I don’t get anywhere else.
It costs me Dh44,000 and I can pay it over six cheques, which is extremely manageable.
I wanted to get a one-bedroom apartment but I also wanted to make sure it had plenty of space. I am really happy to have this place.
It’s one of the bigger apartments in the building and it has two bathrooms as well as a balcony, which was crucial to moving in here.
I wanted a place with a bit of extra space but wasn’t charging too much in rent, this ticked all the boxes really.
What are the advantages of living here?
Living here means I am pretty central to almost everything, which is fantastic.
If I want to go to Sharjah or to the other side of Dubai, like JLT, then the distance is about the same, so it’s convenient from that point of view.
Being an Indian is great here, too. It reminds me so much of my home country because there are so many fellow Indians here and it is always thriving with lots of people around.
There are other communities in Dubai that just don’t have that. A lot of them are too quiet for my liking, there’s nothing to do, especially in the gated communities.
You just have to walk out the front door here and you are surrounded by shops and restaurants, as well as crowds.
Everyone is so approachable. You can just walk up to someone and have a chat with them and they will be so friendly.
I go to the gym nearby about four times a week and everyone down there is really helpful and easy to talk to.
Are there any downsides to living here?
Not for me. There are still places open that I remember as a child.
There are so many good memories all around me.
What have you done to make the place your own?
I’ve just really got all the basic stuff you expect, such as a television, dining table and sofa.
The sofa converts into a bed so when my parents come over to visit, they can have the bedroom.
A townhouse on the Dubai-Abu Dhabi border for Dh82,000: in pictures
